Dear DC Council members,

We, the undersigned organizations, join together to ask you to stop Mayor Bowser from terminating DC residents from the rapid re-housing program for hitting an arbitrary time limit. This year, as many as 913 families are facing time limit terminations. The Bowser Administration estimates that 90% of these families would not be able to afford rent on their own if their subsidy was terminated.

The lack of affordable housing in the District of Columbia is a structural, systemic problem with deep roots that demands comprehensive and sustained solutions. Cutting DC residents from rental assistance for hitting a time limit when they cannot afford market rent on their own is unfair, unjust, and will lead to increased evictions and homelessness--disproportionately harming Black residents and other communities of color.

We ask you to:

1) Demand that the Mayor immediately withdraw all time-limit termination notices that have been issued by the Department of Human Services (DHS),
2) Devote surplus funds to maintain rapid re-housing rental support until every participant has the resources they need to afford housing,
3) Increase permanent affordable housing vouchers in next year’s budget so that rapid re-housing participants can transition into a program that better maintains housing stability, including Targeted Affordable Housing for families and Local Rent Supplement Program tenant vouchers, and
4) Reform rapid re-housing legislatively so that DC residents cannot be terminated for a time limit until they can afford rent without further assistance.